I came across this article in the news and thought I'd post it here for the parents of rising seniors who may be thinking through commuting vs living on campus issues. In the article it says that 20% of freshmen commute, but it's important to know that that's only out of the top 245 schools. The actual percent of commuters is much higher than that considering all who attend community college and other state schools near where they live. The article is also very much slanted towards the negatives of not living on campus and doesn't highlight some of the benefits of commuting, but it does bring up some things to consider. So with the disclaimer that sometimes commuting is absolutely the better choice, here's the article. http://news.yahoo.com/weigh-benefits-drawbacks-living-home-during-college-130000989.html

Whose idea is it to get the four year education instead of two? If she's itching to work she might be better served by getting a two year degree and then completing the certification. The salary is on the lower side, so avoiding high debt should definitely be a goal IMO. Have you looked at the tuition costs for the other colleges which offer the certification? Even thought they are out of state, their OOS tuition should be low. Most of them probably don't even require standardized test scores. Starting with her local CC is probably a great idea, especially considering her need to do remedial work in math. I'm not saying that a four year education is the wrong approach, but 60 credits (usually what's needed for an associates) is all that is required to take the certification classes. I'm not familiar with her program at all, but I'm guessing that if training centers have been reduced in numbers that available jobs have also been reduced, maybe due to budget cuts. It sounds like she won't be 21 for about three years and that may be about how long it will take for her to catch up and get a two year degree. If she can excel at CC, she may find that continuing for a BA can be affordable and can choose that route and then certify. Certainly her options for work will increase with the higher degree. As for NCAA, I have no information on that, but there are some here who are very knowledgeable. If she went to CC, I doubt she'd need anything extra to simply join a track team if that's available. Sounds like there's more to build her transcript with so that's good. You mention the SAT often, but I really would personally recommend the ACT practice test for an idea of where she's at. The SAT is more problem solving ish and the ACT is more achievement based. Even though the science is mostly reading comprehension and graph reading, it may give you an idea of how well she's studied the different sciences. The ACT may also give you a better idea of where she's at in math as the problems are more straight forward.

Sorry, I don't have PM enabled. Back when the forum format changed, what had been written in one of my PMs showed up elsewhere. Don't know if it was a glitch or what, so I disabled it. I miss being able to PM with others, but ... So if she can attend anywhere with the suggested majors and minors, hopefully she'll have more options. Please let me know if you want any info I posted deleted.

I searched youth hostel specifically and Motel 6 and Red Roof Inn were listed along with Gram's. The Motel 6 site specifically states that you must be 18 yo. No info for Red Roof Inn. Gram's says all ages accepted, but that doesn't mean that they don't have a minimum of 18 yo if the minor is staying alone. Unfortunately the USA is not like overseas when it comes to youth hostels. I would encourage your son to try emailing anyone who knows him at the university and might be willing to advocate for him. As so many schools put more students in a room than originally intended, I would think they could manage this for him just temporarily. He can mention that he's fine with using a small inflatable mattress and bringing minimal clothing so he won't need any additional furniture. I would think that even an RA would be able to take him in for a very short time. They are often given a double sized room as a single. I'd also just call a bunch of hotels, apartment rentals, room rental, hostels, B&Bs, etc and ask and then list all of the places you tried in an email to housing. Admissions needs to know that they will lose a student if housing can't come up with something on campus. Admissions likes to protect the percent of sophomores who return. I guess I'd just keep going higher up until someone there finds a solution. At the least they could override a rule limiting visiting a friend and staying in their dorm room until a bed opens.

Instead of looking at what she needs to get into college, I'd be more concerned with what she needs to be ready for college. As others have mentioned, I'd start by explaining the standardized test and how to take it and then administering a practice ACT complete with bubble sheets and pencil. The scores will let you know where she's at in the different areas and then you can plan where she should begin and what she can get high school credit for having completed. I'd also talk with her about how she came to the decision that she wants to pursue her career and make sure that she knows what the job entails. Is shadowing possible? IMO it just seems so restrictive to only have five colleges as options especially considering her need for financial aid. The Poconos and Philadelphia are a world apart. How would she get to family in the Poconos? If she needs to provide her own transportation, that's an expensive way to do laundry. I also think she needs to visit Temple. I think I know the program and it's both academically and physically rigorous. I'm not understanding why she'd have to attend Temple for undergraduate in order to apply for this certification. At least 60 credits are needed prior to applying and the candidate must be 21 by the time the certification program (13 weeks?) is completed. The 60 credits could be completed inexpensively at a CC near her home and then she could apply to this program. It sounds like she should work on physical endurance and all in addition to academics. I may be wrong about all of this, but if not, I'd broaden the college search once you know where her test scores and skills are at. Maybe you could arrange a visit to Temple with her and arrange for her to speak with someone in her specific program so she can get some specific questions answered. Maybe she could look at schools which offer some type of ROTC program as that would get her the physical training and other skills which would likely be useful. She doesn't have to enter it for the scholarship as that would be tied to a military commitment. Others more familiar with those programs could give you better advice on that if she's interested. After checking further, I may be totally wrong in the program she's interested in as it seems the training for the program I'm thinking of is more widely available,

Some colleges are very upfront that only the first year or two are guaranteed on-campus housing, but others seem to try to hide that info. Also, some campuses are split and require transportation for students to get to classes and other activities. If the school provides good transportation, then it's certainly doable but it is something many students take into consideration. It wasn't until acceptances arrived that we looked more closely at the various housing situations. I think that this year with many colleges getting higher yields than expected, it's probably not unusual for housing to be tight. As for the number of students with cars on campus, it varies so much by school. Urban campuses tend to have the fewest and more remote locations the most. Cars aren't needed as much with city transportation and parking spaces are at a premium and the opposite is generally true for the more rural locations. Also some colleges do not allow freshmen to have cars on campus. Hoping to hear good news today Jenny.

I was curious, so I googled and found this! http://grams-inn-tampa.com/ Apparently 7 minutes from campus by bus. Very cool setting and right up his alley. He might even be able to work there in exchange for "rent". Beds as inexpensive as $25 per night.

I re-read your post and I see that some of the problem is that your son doesn't consider this to be too serious. In one way that's good that he's able to roll with the punches and all, but he does need to realize how limiting his age is when finding temporary housing. I'd suggest letting him call hotels to inquire about a room and make sure he knows he has to tell them his age, although they will likely ask and need to see ID upon registration. He can do the same for bed and breakfasts, and youth hostels, and ... Once he has a better idea of how limited his other options are, he'll be better able to present the situation to the housing people and may welcome your help in doing so. Lots of prospective and returning students change their plans before school starts, so something should open up soon. They just need to know how badly your son needs a dorm assignment. Your son has worked so hard and accomplished so much. IMO I'd do whatever it takes to get him on campus for the fall. We all make mistakes, regardless of our ages, and hopefully this one is straightened out nicely with more emphatic phone calls or a visit.

I think it would be worth a trip there so he can speak with the res life people in person. You can back him up, if need be, that he has no other options due to his age. I think they will realize the seriousness of the situation and find a spot for him asap. If they say they can do it after the first week, he should start talking with friends now about staying with them for the week. Other than that, if he knows an advisor, mentor or professor well, maybe he could ask them for suggestions. They might be inclined to speak to res life on his behalf or may know someone who could take him in temporarily so they don't lose him as a student.

I noticed that some schools accepted no one off of wait lists this year as they had greater yields than they had expected. Stats seem to indicate that this year's admissions were even more competitive than last year. If more students who are admitted commit to attending, they have to house them somewhere. Other times it's temporary due to maintenance or construction. I remember reading about St. Mary's in Maryland needing to use hotel rooms and even a ship for housing students due to mold issues. I forget where, but some college last year utilized common rooms in the same way. They put paper over the glass wall for partial privacy. Hopefully it's all going to be very short term and hopefully the quad won't be affected. It would be interesting if there's a study to see if students who are tripled in doubles or housed in common rooms are more likely to transfer out. I think most students are much more adaptable than we think they are. Gingersmom it looks like they've had this problem in past years and even resorted to using hotels, which parents say they've avoided since. On the CC thread about housing, there's even mention of one student opting to stay in the temporary housing for the 2nd semester even though other housing became available. They did give a rebate for the first semester housing. I hope your daughter has a great freshman year.

Shoe bags can provide lots of pockets for pens, markers, hair supplies, toiletries, whatever and can be hung over the inside or outside of a door, or even off Contact hooks on a wall. If the bed is lofted, this could even be hung over the footboard and if too long, cut and those pockets hug over the bed rails for easy access. Ones with clear plastic pockets make it easier to find things. If they provide bookshelves, that could also go under the lofted bed or maybe on the desk to save floor space. It's hard to know ahead of time what will work best as roommates often come up with some creative ideas.

I would suggest that whatever types of communication you'd like to have while she's away you start up now while she's still home. Skype needs to be set up and that's something you can do together. While texting and emailing is great, I think it's also important to be able to hear them or see and hear them at least once in a while. As moms we can hear their emotions as it's sometimes conveyed more in voice than in actual words. And news of four-leggeds always is more fun than that of the two-leggeds. As far as letting her know that you're there for her and want to stay in touch, just tell her that. Texts and news may be slow to arrive during orientation and all as they are kept really busy and are enjoying their independence a bit too. Edited to add that the above is what we did. Dd was already a full-time college student, although a commuter, so we were used to communicating via phone and text. We set up Skype, and while the picture and sound aren't ideal, it was great to be able to see each other, especially towards the beginning of the first semester. Skype is also great for them to see their four-leggeds. We never set up a time to connect and phone conversations often happen while she's waiting, or walking or in transit.

Glad to hear that you're being proactive and now there's a 98.7% chance sophomore slump will never happen! I think that maybe some of the pressure felt in sophomore year is due to needing to declare a major and I can imagine that it's felt more strongly by those who have had a change of heart or really don't yet know what to choose. I think that in this case quarters can be beneficial as there's more opportunity to choose different courses which may lead to a decision. It seems your son's school makes it very easy to declare and change majors, so he's got lots of time. At 18 or 19 it's hard to know what you want to do for the rest of your life!

When I read this I thought this was a great way to avoid the Sophomore slump by getting it over with in the freshman year. Then I googled freshman slump just for the fun of it. That exists too. I knew the concept of this, but never heard it referred to by this term. It's the usual "awakening" that some freshmen have after the end of the first semester and grades come in. Maybe those who experience this type of freshman slump don't have to deal with the sophomore slump as they're needing to work on raising their GPA instead of worrying about doing as well as they did the first year. But what you're saying is that your student may experience the sophomore slump early. I'm enjoying some popcorn too.

If cost isn't an issue, I'd suggest dual enrollment for Physics 1 and 2 and sitting for the AP exam to help with possibly getting transfer credit. Physics labs are fun to do with others and DE is great prep for the 4-year.

Had to find out more about this SS so sharing my findings here for anyone else who isn't familiar with it. Per Wiki: "A sophomore slump or sophomore jinx refers to an instance in which a second, or sophomore, effort fails to live up to the standards of the first effort. It is commonly used to refer to the apathy of students (second year of high school, college or university),[1][2] the performance of athletes (second season of play), singers/bands (second album),[3] television shows (second seasons) and movies (sequels/prequels). Here's a blog post in which one student describes her experience. http://www.georgefox.edu/offices/student-life/resources/slump.html Cynthia is this something which your son was familiar with from talk on campus? Dd may well be already familiar with this, but it is new to me - maybe not in concept, but in name. Maybe parents of freshmen should encourage them to leave room for improvement the following year? :leaving:

This is the first I've heard of this. I like your son's approach of attack and conquer! I could be wrong, but I don't think that dd gives much thought to her status as an underclassman. I'm sure there are benefits to being an upperclassman, but I don't know what they are other than registration priority and internship opportunities. I think dd feels next year will be somewhat easier as she already knows her way around. Courses were probably equal in difficulty last year, but she can't compare at this point. Like you, I'm interested to hear the experience of those who have students who survived the sophomore slump and those who managed to avoid it.

Here's some jersey knit sheets that feel amazing and hold up very well. Pricier but they usually go on sale or you can at least get a 20% off coupon. I'm surprised that only a few colors are available. Not sure if they're discontinuing them or just waiting on a shipment. http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/pure-beech-reg-jersey-knit-sheet-set/132843 IMO the most important thing is a foam topper as some of the dorm mattresses are really hard. I think it's WUSTL which provides a Tempurpedic mattress for all students. For the rest of us, a thick foam topper works well. I'm having trouble with links working, but you can just google BB&B pure beech jersey knit sheets.

A short term library class can get the student started, but considering how much Word, Excel and PP are used in college, I'd recommend a CC class or something similar. Being able to navigate these applications easily will help cut down time spent in future class work and projects. Equally important to the class is keeping up on the skills after the final is done. It's one of those classes which can be done very nicely online so that opens up many possibilities including the ones mentioned in this thread.

:hurray: :party: :hurray: ............ moon .............

Hofstra has changed. 48% of students are from OOS and 3500 students reside on campus. I think Adelphi is still more of a commuter school. Just adding that Hofstra is now test optional. It's on the rise and in looking at your daughter's preferences, it seems to meet her criteria nicely. There's a new workout facility and it appears that there's lots of suites available for freshmen. As she's interested in business, she'll have great internship opportunities nearby and in NYC. What did she think of it after the tour?

It seems like an absolute gem for the right student. It's the Richard Bland College of the College of William and Mary. It's a two year college in Virginia and has very low tuition, IS about 5.5K and OOS about 15K, and also has room and board available. It has a unique relationship with W&M as it's possible to have guaranteed transfer if certain conditions are met including a 3.25GPA. RB students are also able to take classes towards their major at W&M while enrolled at RB. Nice! It's been around since 1960 but the residential village was added in 2008. Stats for students are much lower than at W&M so it could be a great opportunity for a student to shine and end up with a W&M diploma. I'm sure most VA residents know about this, but I thought it might appeal to some OOS students as well as the overall cost is lower than most residential colleges. I don't know if a student can establish VA residency while attending - maybe while working part time and taking classes part time? Maybe living off campus for a year and then applying as a VA resident? Not sure, but it might be something to look into if interested.

After what they're putting her through, honestly I can't imagine wanting to return, but I don't come from a military background. I hope she's able to return to good health and channel all her energy and persistence into pursuing her dreams, whatever they may be. The good she's gotten from her military training will be highly valued in the private sector as well. I hope she's able to get some much needed TLC while she's home.

Matroyshka, congratulations to your daughter on her accomplishments! It seems that you're beginning to entertain schools out of your original search area. If you could consider schools within a reasonable flight distance, she might have many more options. Most school breaks are known well in advance, so you can plan for flights and all. As she's interested in a water based field, it would be great if she could be somewhere she can be on or in the water year-round. If she's open to schools in the south, she may want to check out this one. Less than $30K total for OOS. http://uwf.edu/cassh/departments/anthropology-and-archaeology/undergraduate-majors/ba-maritime-studies/ She can run it by her "chemist". Sorry, another link I can't get to work. Google UWF Maritime studies. Texas A&M is a few thousand more, but ACT 29 is top 75%. Either or both may offer some merit.

According to the IRS: "A. Unlike the other education tax credits, the American opportunity tax credit includes expenses for course-related books, supplies and equipment that are not necessarily paid to the educational institution. It also differs from the Hope scholarship credit because it allows the credit to be claimed for four years of post-secondary education instead of two." Here's the IRS link: http://www.irs.gov/uac/American-Opportunity-Tax-Credit:-Questions-and-Answers On edit, same link as above. The above posts lists what isn't covered, and this answer lists some allowable expenses. Adding a link with great information about AOTC and how to apply grants and scholarships regarding tuition and fees vs living expenses, including room and board. http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/Pell%20AOTC%204%20pager.pdf